Text Structure
Nonfiction
Organizational
Patterns
Text Structure
How text is organized.
• Stories are usually chronological.
• Nonfiction has lots of text structures.
• Each paragraph may be different.
We’ll learn 5 types.
Chronological
In order of time
Chrono = time
Stories are usually told chronologically
Moved
Away
Met Girl
Fell in
Love
Born
Married Died
in 1882 in 1906 in 1948
Manipulation of Chronological
Order
Sometimes authors use techniques to
manipulate the order they present
information instead of using straight
chronological order
• Flashback: Showing scenes or events
from an earlier time
• Foreshadowing: Giving hints and clues
about actions and events that will come
later in the story
Sequence / Order of Importance
Steps described in the order they occur.
Get bread
Tighten
Laces
Tie Loops
Together
Make Two
Loops
Put on
Shoe
Open jars
Spread peanut butter
Spread jelly
Combine slices
Enjoy.
Does not take place at any specific point in time.
Cause and Effect
Explains reasons why something happened.
Or explains the effects of something.
Many Karate
Schools Opened.
Not feeding it.
Not petting it.
Why Dog
Ran Away
Lots of Karate
Movies in 60’s
Nunchuck sales
Increased 400%
Not loving it.
Hospital cases
went up.
Problem and Solution
Author states a problem and solution(s).
Similar to cause and effect.
Missing
Books
Eagles were
endangered.
Putting in
the Closet
Getting
Lockers
Make laws to
protect them.
Basically
Cause & Effect
With an Opinion.
And an answer.
Compare and Contrast
Compare = find similarities
Contrast = find differences
Shows what’s in common and what’s different.
Apples &
Oranges
Fruits
Colors
Have Seeds
Tastes
Healthy
Locations
DESCRIPTION
• USES SENSORY DETAILS &
DESCRIPTIONS TO HELP THE READER
VISUALIZE INFO ABOUT IDEA, EVENT, OR
PERSON
MAGMA
CHAMBER
CRATER
CONDUIT
INSIDE
A
VOLACANO
CONDUIT CONNECTS THE
CHAMBER TO THE SURFACE
MAGMA
CHAMBER IS
UNDER THE
BEDROCK.
MAGMA
CHAMBER
CONTAINS
Practice
Starts easy but gets hard
1. Read the paragraph
2. Identify the text structure
3. Write it down.
1
Deviled Eggs
Pop out (remove) the egg yolks to a
small bowl and mash with a fork. Add
mayonnaise, mustard powder, vinegar,
salt and pepper and mix thoroughly. Fill
the empty egg white shells with the
mixture and sprinkle lightly with paprika.
Cover lightly with plastic wrap and
refrigerate for up to one day before
serving.
1. Sequence
2
Sports at Ericson
There are two popular sports played at
Ericson, basketball and volleyball. Both
take place inside of the gym at Ericson.
Also, each sport has two teams of people.
In basketball, however, the ball can be
played off of the floor, and in volleyball, the
ball cannot touch the floor or it is out of
play. Basketball and volleyball are popular
sports at Ericson.
2. Compare/Contrast
3
The Lazy Student
When Tim woke up, he didn’t want to
go to school. His mom took him anyway.
So, he went to school, but he didn’t do any
work. The days passed, and Tim still
didn’t do any work. Mr. Morton called
Tim’s house, but Tim still wouldn’t do any
work. Finally the report cards came out,
and Tim failed his classes. Tim was sad.
3. Chronological
4
Failing Classes
Lots of students fail classes. Some
students fail because the work is too hard
for them. Other times they may fail
because they are lazy, and don’t do any
work. Another reason why students may
fail is if they don’t go to school. If you’re
not in class you may miss a lot. Many
students fail classes every quarter.
4. Cause and effect
5
Passing Classes
A lot of students have been failing
classes. These students wouldn’t be
failing classes if they studied more, asked
questions, tried harder, and came in for
extra help. Even though a lot of students
fail classes, they have many options if they
want to pass.
5. Problem and solution
6
Gail Denvers
Devers experienced the highlight of any
sprinter’s career, as she stood on the huge
platform in the giant stadium and received an
Olympic gold medal.
Eighteen months earlier she wasn’t thinking
about running. She was hoping that she would
be able to walk again.
Just four years earlier, in the summer of
1988, as Devers was training for the Olympic
Games, to be held in Seoul, South Korea, she
began to feel very tired all the time and failed to
make the Olympic finals.
6. Chronological
7
If you ask me, the perfect pizza has a thin crust, but
not too thin. Even though I'm from Chicago, I prefer
the New York style crust. Your perfect pizza might
have tomato sauce on it, but mine has pesto on top of
the crust. On the pesto I'd like to see lots of cheese:
a full layer of shredded mozzarella and Romano
cheese, and on top of the shredded mozzarella, I'd
like to see some slices of fresh mozzarella. Now you
might think I'm crazy for this one, but I'd really like to
see some goat cheese in the crust. To top it all off, I'd
like to see it polka-dotted with pepperoni slices. Now
that's what I call a pizza pie.
7. Description
8
HOW TO USE THE MICROSCOPE
1. Plug in the lamp.
2. Place a sample of what you wish to observe
on a slide.
3. Adjust the mirror so it reflects light from the
room up into the objective lens.
4. Place your slide with the specimen directly
over the center of the glass circle on the stage.
5. With the LOW POWER objective lens placed
over the slide, use the coarse focus knob.
6. Look through the eyepiece with one eye while
closing the other eye.
7. Use the fine focus knob to fine
8. Sequence
9
Fewer Toads
Though toads are still around, they no longer
are as common in some areas as they were a
few decades ago. The growing use of
insecticides has reduced their numbers. The
chemical sprays usually do not harm toads, but
cut down the animals’ food supply. Thereby, the
toads do not have enough food to survive.
There are fewer toads in many areas populated
by humans.
9. Cause and effect
10
Restoring the Toad
Dr. Knapp doesn’t want people to sit back and
let the toad vanish. He believes that everyone is
responsible for restoring the toad species. Dr.
Knapp thinks we could help restore the toad
population if we stop mowing parts of our lawns and
let the grass grow wild to reserve space for the toad.
He also believes we need to stop using pesticides
and fertilizers. The chemicals kill the insects that
toads eat. If we preserve some spaces in our lawns
and stop using fertilizers, Dr. Knapp believes we can
save the toads.
10. Problem and solution
Answers
1. Sequence
2. Compare and Contrast
3. Chronological
4. Cause and Effect
5. Problem and Solution
6. Chronological
7. DESCRIPTION
8. Sequence
9. Cause and Effect
10. Problem and Solution